A Day in My Life - Cursing and Thanking Digital Media

We all do it. 

Wake up, rub our eyes, check our phones. 

For some of us, we just see the time and if we have any missed calls, then catch up

on the rest following a workout or morning routine. For others, the first 20+ minutes

of the morning are spent scrolling social media, checking emails, and jumping into

the day before rolling out of bed. 

I really try to be the former example, but even during my workout I use the Runna

app to program for me and listen to my Apple Music workout playlists. After getting

breakfast ready for my family, I use the weather app so I know how to dress my

toddler. I use my Reminders app for anything that pops in my head (pick up milk

on the way home, call the doctor once the clinic opens…) and check my work and

personal calendars for the day. 

After daycare drop off and settling in at work, I check my email and messages from

clients. I use Soci to create and schedule our business’ social media content on

Facebook, Instagram, and Google Business Profile. From there I also respond to

comments, messages, reviews, and monitor the performance of our ads. 

 

As the day winds down and I scroll my personal social media after putting our

toddler to bed, I also check my Fitbit app to see my step count for the day and if I

haven’t met my goal, I do some extra chores around the house until my watch does

the celebratory vibrations when I hit my step goal. 

Marketing Perspectives (as a Consumer and as a Business)

While I find myself on both the business and consumer side of marketing, the sheer

volume of advertisements gives me a negative reaction while scrolling Instagram,

Pinterest, and Facebook. I get frustrated with the pop ups and how little of my feed

is actually my friends and the creators I follow. My email inbox fills up quickly with

marketing emails, to the point that I may miss an important email from a colleague.

At the same time, these digital media resources make communication so much faster

and simpler, and provide a lot of entertainment as well. 

Today’s marketing world is so immersed in digital media, and the connectivity of it

all allows companies to market to such a wide range of people. While frustrating,

consumers are used to the barrage of advertisements, so marketers need to be ultra-

competitive when creating ads. They need to catch the consumer’s attention before

they scroll on to the next post. They need to be funny or convincing in a way that

feels familiar to a consumer. This new world of marketing means that many

businesses partner with social media influencers to check all of those boxes:

• funny
• familiar
• convincing
• attention catching

From the business perspective, marketing through digital media is a relatively

inexpensive way to generate leads and find new employees when we have a job

opening. The connected nature of digital media also means that if a customer has a

negative experience, they can share it more publicly than ever. My biggest stresses

in my role have been handling negative customer reviews that simply are not true. 

It’s definitely a “new normal” living in this digital media marketing age, where it is

so deeply integrated into both our personal and professional lives. 

What is your biggest frustration with digital media?